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Distributed "Nuclear Batteries" the New Infrastructure Answer?
thepacketmaster writes "The Star reports about a new power generation model using smaller distributed power generators located closer to the consumer. This saves money on power generation lines and creates an infrastructure that can be more easily expanded with smaller incremental steps, compared to bigger centralized power generation projects. The generators in line for this are green sources, but Hyperion Power Generation, NuScale, Adams Atomic Engines (and some other companies) are offering small nuclear reactors to plug into this type of infrastructure. The generator from Hyperion is about the size of a garden shed, and uses older technology that is not capable of creating nuclear warheads, and supposedly self-regulating so it won't go critical. They envision burying reactors near the consumers for 5-10 years, digging them back up and recycling them. Since they are so low maintenance and self-contained, they are calling them nuclear batteries."
supposedly self-regulating so it won't go critical
Supposedly? Whaddya mean 'supposedly'? Look, if this thing is gonna be buried in MY backyard, I want a LOT MORE than 'supposedly'.
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Some drunk in a Suburban runs into one at 75mph and contaminates the neighborhood. Yeah, great idea.
Every time you call tech support, a little kitten dies.
A simpler mechanism has been used for decades, radioisotope thermal generators. These show all the strength and weaknesses of the idea on a smaller scale than full reactors. They provide reliable power in harsh conditions. They also pose a clean up hazard. The former Soviet Union is littered with old RTGs which should be retired but end up vandalized by people who don't understand the danger to themselves and others. It's worse when the vandals DO know what they are getting into. Promises are not worth much even when you are an organization as large as the Soviet Union was. These benefits and problems are orders of magnitude larger for full reactors.
DMCA, Hollings, Palladium. What might have sounded like paranoia is now common sense.
and we have a hazmat incident. What could be worse than a gas line breach...how about a core breach!
Radioisotope thermoelectric generators are nothing new. And they have the same problem as all small "safe" nuclear power generators.
They are full of highly radioactive material.
Even if the stuff can't go boom on it's own they make a perfectly good dirty bomb, if introduced to some simple explosives.
Not to mention that they can and do leak.
The Russians have many Radioisotope thermoelectric generator along their northern coast. And they get lost, leak and are generally a safety hazard.
bullshit - not "a lot of explosives", that containment vessel is VERY thin compared to a conventional PWR, more like a couple minutes with common construction equipment to breach one of these. and as a bonus Hyperion's choice of fuel is extremely flammable and explosive upon contact with air. These things would be a *very* attractive terrorist targets
Come on you stupid backward dipshit ignorant latte-sipping bisexual liberal faggots, get with the program!
Oh! Es inutil...
User maintains more than a dozen sockpuppet accounts on Slashdot.
Solar takes a lot of space and puts out a lot less power. It's also costlier. And the process of manufacturing solar panels is horrible for the environment.
Nuclear power is, believe it or not, the cleanest technology we have available, even if you consider the highly radioactive waste and the (typically minute) risk of meltdown.
What about mining for... and I'm going to sound ignorant about this because I am... whatever it is you put into the nuclear plant? Uranium? That's an environmental impact.
As for power, it seems to me that adding more solar panels/ collectors will improve that.
Cost is related to economies of scale. If more solar panels are purchased, the price will come down as the manufacture efficiency improves.
And as far as bad for the environment, as I understand it there are cleaner forms of solar power, not to mention that there's of course room for technological improvements on solar power. People who say that solar power is bad for the environment seem remarkably short sighted. Solar power is not perfect as is, but neither is nuclear, we seem to have invested a lot more time and effort into nuclear so far, and it doesn't seem that the dangers of nuclear are going anywhere.